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The litter tray

Join our community of cat lovers on the Mumsnet Cat forum for kitten advice and help with cat behaviour.

Original poster

Locking cat out overnight?

27 replies

OutDamnedSpot · 26/12/2022 22:47

My cat has always been a good hunter - previously brought us mice and rabbits, usually dead, but I occasionally have to catch and release them.

More recently, he has started bringing rats. So far, they have been dead, but I’m really worried he’ll bring in a live one.

I’m considering locking the cat flap overnight so that he can’t bring ‘gifts’ in for us. I’d put some sort of shelter / kennel outside, and allow him in as soon as I was awake, just not allow free reign to the house while we’re sleeping and unaware what he might bring in.

Has anyone done this? Is it safe? Humane?

OP posts:
hilariousnamehere · 26/12/2022 22:51

Could you keep him in at night instead? I'd be worried with the cold snaps that he'd freeze :(

WunWun · 26/12/2022 22:52

Yeah, I'd rather get a litter tray and lock them in.

KylieKangaroo · 26/12/2022 22:55

I leave mine out at night for this reason. Sometimes I keep her in but she just scratches to get out. I have a shelter for her but she doesn't even use it, I think she probably goes to someone's garage or something as she always comes back fine!

Original poster
OutDamnedSpot · 26/12/2022 22:55

I thought it might be more cruel to keep him in. He tends to spend most nights outside then sleep all day.

OP posts:
HandShoe · 26/12/2022 23:03

We had a magnet activated cat flap when I was young. If our cat was carrying something large e.g rabbit he couldn’t get back in as the flap wouldn’t activate so he’d leave them outside (we always looked down before stepping outside!) Not a quick fix but maybe something to consider?

WunWun · 26/12/2022 23:09

My friend's cat managed to get a wood pigeon in through a microchip activated catflap

Original poster
OutDamnedSpot · 26/12/2022 23:09

Ours is chip activated and he’s got rabbits through it… 🤷🏻‍♀️

OP posts:
tillyandmilly · 26/12/2022 23:12

My sister keeps her cats in at night with a litter tray she calls them in at 8 pm and they are shut in - and its bedtime! No hunting at night allowed!

70isaLimitNotaTarget · 26/12/2022 23:17

It's not just the hunting though , its the fighting'n'brawling (especially if there are other cats out, eg ferals or farm cats ) and more at risk of getting run over .

Ours bring in random prey like worms , dead bird, live mouse (thanks female cat)
They eye up squirrels but get a stern look.

Sparklingbrook · 26/12/2022 23:21

I wouldn’t sleep if Sparklingcat was out all night. Cats should be in at night really.

WunWun · 26/12/2022 23:21

There's a video on YouTube of a cat that brings a live mallard through the flap 😁

Sorry, not helpful. I think it's fine to shut them in overnight.

AnnaMagnani · 26/12/2022 23:28

Keep the cat in overnight - teach him to come home for dinner and then he's in for the night.

I have a rescue boy and he soon got the message although he tries it on every evening He's currently asleep in my wardrobe and we won't hear from him until breakfast.

On the rare occasions he does stay out, the sound of the fights he gets into are terrible. It's worth him being in for his own safety, let alone the neighbours' cats and local wildlife.

70isaLimitNotaTarget · 26/12/2022 23:33

WunWun · 26/12/2022 23:21

There's a video on YouTube of a cat that brings a live mallard through the flap 😁

Sorry, not helpful. I think it's fine to shut them in overnight.

I'm not letting our boy watch that , he enjoys those "Magpies For Cats" videoes and gets very excited when something else has kiled a magpie and he can bring in the feathers .
He was raging at DH who switched off his M4C videoes to watch a hairy electrician change a lightfitting on YouTube !

Singleandproud · 26/12/2022 23:34

Mine knock on my bedroom window to get in, they jump on a fence and then on the porch and up. It means I have to get up and down a couple of times but it means I don't let them in when they are carrying anything or at least can get a container ready.

Dancingfairydreams · 26/12/2022 23:36

WunWun · 26/12/2022 23:21

There's a video on YouTube of a cat that brings a live mallard through the flap 😁

Sorry, not helpful. I think it's fine to shut them in overnight.

This had just made my night! Thanks for mentioning @WunWun 🤣🤣
@OutDamnedSpot I'd keep cat in, less danger, you'll probably find they'll change their sleeping habits anyway

allboysherebutme · 26/12/2022 23:46

No he may freeze to death. X

QueSyrahSyrah · 26/12/2022 23:49

As a kid in Yorkshire our cat used to be out all night, we didn't have a cat flap so she had no choice but she'd scratch and cry to go out if we tried to keep her in. She never froze!

caringcarer · 27/12/2022 00:06

My cats are allowed out during the daytime but I shut them in overnight with litter tray. It's not cruel. It would be cruel to lock them out in freezing cold.

thelobsterquadrille · 27/12/2022 08:06

I would rather shut them in overnight than shut them out.

CrunchyCarrot · 27/12/2022 08:27

We had 3 cats in the past we used to keep locked out at night. This was purely because I developed back problems and couldn't deal with being disturbed (cats famously waking at 3 a.m.!) Due to the layout of the house there was no way to keep them away from us at night. We had a garage they used to go to for shelter with cat houses in there. I still felt bad about it though. We live semi-rurally so they were safe enough, plus they were all in their teens when we began doing this and not curious kittens left to get up to mischief.

I do think if your cat hunts and brings prey in, then that is problematic (we have one now who also does that). We shut him indoors at night with a litter tray and as that's always been his routine he accepts it. If your cat hasn't had that routine they may kick up a fuss. I think if you have some kind of outdoor shelter that may work, but they will need protection from the worst weather. You could try shutting them in as a trial and see how that goes first!

MrsSkylerWhite · 27/12/2022 08:28

Please don’t. Cats can and do die from hypothermia.

OwwwMuuuum · 27/12/2022 08:31

Our cat is a big, fluffy boy and regularly chooses to stay out all night, even in extremely cold temperatures. Sometimes he chooses to stay in. I let him make his own decisions, we don’t have a flap so if he’s out, he’s out until we let him in. Cats are natural nocturnal predators, what’s all this about locking them in at night? Surely this interrupts their natural prey instincts?

cliffdiver · 27/12/2022 08:52

What room does the cat flap lead to? Can he be confined to that room?

Our cat can come and go throughout the night (microchip cat flap) but is confined to the kitchen.

Original poster
OutDamnedSpot · 27/12/2022 09:43

Thanks all. The cat flap leads to the kitchen / dining room and I do shut that door overnight (since he bought me a mouse to play with in the middle of the night) but the thought of him bringing a rat in there is seriously freaking me out.

OP posts:
lipstickwoman · 27/12/2022 09:47

I've tried keeping our (ancient) boy in but by 2am he's literally yowling to be let out, as he has been for the last 18 years.

Tom cats can be very nocturnal. Worries me though